Work

Bacterial Virulence in the Moonlight: Multitasking Bacterial Moonlighting Proteins Are Virulence Determinants in Infectious Disease

Year: 2011

Type: review

Abstract: Men may not be able to multitask, but it is emerging that proteins can. This capacity of proteins to exhibit more than one function is termed protein moonlighting, and, surprisingly, many highly conserved proteins involved in metabolic regulation or the cell stress response have a range of additional biological actions which are involved in bacterial virulence. This review highlights the multiple roles exhibited by a range of bacterial proteins, such as glycolytic and other metabolic enzymes and molecular chaperones, and the role that such moonlighting activity plays in the virulence characteristics of a number of important human pathogens, including Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Helicobacter pylori, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Source: Infection and Immunity

DOI: 10.1128/iai.00179-11

Authors: Brian Henderson, Andrew Martin

Institutions: University College London, Institute of Structural and Molecular Biology

Language: English

Topic: Bacterial Genetics and Biotechnology

Subfield: Genetics

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: British Heart Foundation